Cost effective indoor digital signage to help provide the public information.

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As a government organization one of our most important functions is to provide the public information. Our entrances were wall papered with flyers of information and easy to miss the signal from all the noise. Not to mention just looking tacky!

Raspberry Pi was the solution! We have acquired and mounted TVs at several key locations. Each is paired with a RPi that sits on the drop tiles of the ceiling. On boot the Pi goes out to the file server and pulls in a power point (exported as PNG/Jpg) and runs it as a continuous slideshow while pinging the folder every few hours to check for updates. Each location has it's own folder so that pertinent information can be delivered to each location.

So far nothing too complicated or involved. But it's annoying to drive by an empty shutdown building and see the tvs/monitors lighting up the hallways. Using the HDMI connection I was able to configure CEC (Consumer Electronic Controls) on the RPi to control the TV and power it off after closing time and turn it on when the building opens up!

All told, TV, Mounting Hardware, Raspberry Pi kit, and electricity for 5 years puts the total cost of ownership for this project at just $375 for the lifetime, a cost effective solution to signage needs.